US Security Adviser Says US Not Pushing Iran 'Regime Change'

White House national security adviser John Bolton said Sunday that "it's possible" there will be secondary sanctions imposed on European companies as a result of the us withdrawal from the Irannuclear deal.

Bolton told Fox News in January that the United States should increase economic pressure on Tehran and provide support to government opponents.

US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that the United States was withdrawing from a 2015 deal negotiated by the Obama administration.

The nuclear deal was negotiated by then-president Barack Obama with Britain, China, France, Germany and Russian Federation to limit Iran's nuclear activities in return for relief from crippling global sanctions coordinated by the Obama administration.

"The only way to avoid pain from these sanctions is negotiating with the US, but the instruments are not easy to find", Volker Treier, deputy managing director of Germany's Association of Chambers of Commerce and Industry, said in an interview.

The Weekly Standardreported yesterday that the Trump administration and members of Congress are considering a proposal from the Foundation of Defense of Democracies' Richard Goldberg that involves threatening European countries with protectionist trade tariffs on steel and aluminum if Europe tries to shield its companies' business with Iran. "It depends on the conduct of other governments".

"I have to tell you that I do not believe that regime change in Tehran is the objective that we should be seeking", Johnson said.

"How the United States imposes and enforces sanctions could set up a showdown with the United States" European partners who have said they will continue to abide by the agreement. "Now, that will not happen!"

Image Zoom

With withdrawal from the JCPOA, the USA has re-imposed the highest level of economic sanctions on Iran.

U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin also noted in an announcement that "sanctions will be reimposed subject to certain 90 day and 180 day wind-down periods".

But, why is Europe scrambling to defend and save the Iran nuclear deal? Macron told Trump in their telephone call on Saturday that he was anxious about stability in the Middle East, according to Macron's office.

For weeks, the State Department has been working to bolster security at USA diplomatic posts around the Muslim world in advance of the embassy move, anticipating possible violence even as administration officials say the issue no longer galvanises the Mideast the way it once did.

Lavrov also voiced support for Iran's right to defend its "legitimate interests" as part of the agreement, which removed nuclear sanctions against Iran in early 2016 in exchange for certain limits to its civilian nuclear activities.

"I think there's a certain naivete to think, oh, the Iranians are going to be excited about a new deal when we ripped up the old one", Paul said.

"It's time that European countries opened their eyes", Le Maire said on Europe 1 radio.

"We might conceivably achieve regime change at some stage in the near future but I cannot with any confidence say that would be a change for the better because it seems equally plausible to me to imagine that Qasem Soleimani of the IRGC (Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps) could put himself in a very good position to take over from Ayatollah Khamenei for instance".

"I think the Europeans will see that's in their interest ultimately to go along with this", he said.

Gaza's hospitals struggle to cope with thousands of casualties
Prime Minister Theresa May described the loss of life as "tragic and extremely concerning" and urged Israel to show restraint. Israel has faced global criticism over the use of live fire, but defends soldiers' actions as necessary to guard the border. 5/16/2018

Police widen probe on Paris knife attacker
In addition to the person who died, two others were seriously injured and were transferred to George Pompidou Hospital, he added. Police said the attacker was "neutralized" within nine minutes of the first emergency call. 5/16/2018

JR Smith Shoves Al Horford Mid-Air, Marcus Smarts Retaliates
But the Celtics have to feel pretty good about having Smart on their side in this fight - and any fight for that matter. Smith made no attempt to make a play on the ball, and Horford was sent careening under the basket near the stanchion. 5/16/2018

June's petrol price could rocket past R15 a litre
Oil prices for June delivery was trading lower by a similar margin at Rs 4,846 per barrel with a business volume of 266 lots. Adding to the woes, the government has also denied reducing excise duty prices, thus taking a bigger hit on the public. 5/16/2018

White House ditches cyber coordinator role
The NSC's cyber team has two senior directors, the email said , and thus "cyber coordination is already a core capability". The email, sent by Bolton's aide Christine Samuelian, reads: "The role of cyber coordinator will end". 5/16/2018

Whole Foods sales items get even cheaper for Amazon Prime members
It's the latest effort by Amazon to make Whole Foods more affordable, attempting to shed the grocer's "Whole Paycheck" reputation. Whole Foods now has over 470 stores in the U.S., Canada and United Kingdom combined, but the majority - 463 - are in the U.S. 5/16/2018